Follow
Special Collections and Archives

Special Collections and Archives

Contents

You are here

May 4 Collection

Contents

The May 4 collection is comprised of over 300 cubic feet of archival materials. This chart provides descriptions of each sub-collection that makes up the May 4 collection. Also included are links to finding aids for these sub-collections, which provide detailed information on the contents of each.

70 boxes of newspaper clippings, magazines, and journal articles related to the Kent State shootings and their aftermath, organized chronologically. Materials are added to the collection on a continual basis. Inclusive dates: April 1969-2012

The Doug Moore May 4 papers include correspondence, court documents, flyers, minutes, news clippings, press releases, and reports related to the events of May 4, 1970, as well as its subsequent court cases and commemorations. Inclusive dates: 1967-1978

KSU undergraduate in the 1970s active in student organizations, including groups that developed in response to the Kent State shootings. His papers contain correspondence and news clippings, as well as student government and organization records such as those for the Center for Peaceful Change. Inclusive dates: 1970-1977

Head coach of men's track and field and cross country at Kent State University from 1960 to 1978. Collection contains primarily correspondence pertaining to the shootings at Kent State on May 4, 1970, as well as newspaper clippings about the event. Inclusive dates: 1969-1971

Mayor of Kent from 1969-1972. Collection includes correspondence, documents, speeches, notes, photographs, news clippings, periodicals, and audio materials, most of which pertain to the events of May 4, 1970. Inclusive dates: 1955-1976

KSU professor of biological sciences, beginning in 1967. Collection includes papers, correspondence and records from a variety of campus task forces with which Cooke was involved. Inclusive dates: 1963-1970

Contains newsletters and flyers pertaining to student protests, mainly those that occurred on American college and university campuses in the aftermath of the Kent State shootings in the Spring of 1970. Inclusive dates: 1965-1972

KSU professor of sociology since 1966; May 4, 1970 eyewitness; active in researching the period and event. Papers include scholarly works, primary materials and general clippings. Inclusive dates: 1968-2002

Includes papers of three individuals, Bill Gordon's papers include his articles as a journalist. Ken Hammond was a Kent SDS leader in late 60's and a speaker at the May 4, 1970 rally, and a member of Kent 25. His papers include SDS materials and his eyewitness account. Thomas Lough was a KSU professor sociology. His papers include info on the Kent 25, BUS-SDS walkout and CCC. Inclusive dates: 1968-1977

Consists of materials that document the proceedings of Kent State University student organization, the May 4 Task Force. Materials in this collection include minutes and financial records, as well as news clippings and event materials pertaining to the annual May 4 Commemoration and additional events. Inclusive dates: 1986-2012

Materials gathered by the Special Committee on Campus Tensions, some of which were used as a basis for two publications of the American Council on Education: Perspectives on Campus Tension, and Campus Tensions: Analysis and Recommendations. Inclusive dates: 1969

1978-79 Chair, May 4 TaskForce, also involved in the May 4 Coalition and May 4 Observance Committee. Materials describe the manner in which May 4 commemorations and related activities were undertaken on the Kent campus. Inclusive dates: 1977-1980

KSU student. Includes political ephemera demonstrating the range of student activist concerns for the years 1977-80. Focuses on the May 4 commemoration and the gym annex controversy. Inclusive dates: 1977-1980

Organization operated in the summer of 1970 by 8 individuals involved in the production and financing of the independent film "Confrontation at Kent State." Fund was used to help students wounded at KSU and Jackson State. Includes records relating to the fund and film. Inclusive dates: 1970-1980

KSU art professor. Materials include correspondence sent to student government office from all over the world and compiled into a display, fall quarter, 1970. (Note: Correspondence and telegrams have been digitized and can be viewed online.) Inclusive dates: 1970

National Archives employee from 1968-80. Materials include research notes, correspondence, photocopies of FBI and National Guard reports, other archival sources from D.C. as well as all of his manuscripts. Also included are links to Thomas' e-books about the Kent State shootings. Inclusive dates: 1970-2003

Professor at Emerson College, Boston, part of many notable May 4 projects including the NBC docu-drama "Kent State." Materials include items related to his work on the NBC movie and research. Inclusive dates: 1975-2005

KSU teaching fellow in geography. Offered extra credit points to students for attending 20th annual commemoration and writing a brief report on their experience. Includes 87 class responses, brief explanation of assignment, and poem written by Kieffer. Inclusive dates: 1990

KSU student, eyewitness to May 4, 1970. Materials include color photos along with his personal account and materials related to later class reunion in 1990. (Photos have been digitized and can be viewed online.) Inclusive dates: 1970-1990

In 1990, the Akron Beacon Journal invited readers to share their memories of May 4, 1970. On April 29, 1990, they published excerpts from 12 replies. Includes all responses, printed and unprinted. Inclusive dates: 1990

20th anniversary event, later published in an anthology. Materials related to the planning, organization and actual events of the gathering itself, and the publication of the anthology. Inclusive dates: May 3-6, 1990

Includes materials related to the national open design competition for the Memorial, the entries, and the models of the Memorial. Also includes information related to the dedication of the May 4 Memorial in 1990. Inclusive dates: 1985-1991

Consulting environmental designer who submitted design for the Memorial competition. He wrote the book To Heal Kent State about this experience. Papers include manuscripts, drawings and related materials. Inclusive dates: 1985-1990

Initial winner of the Memorial Design competition, later disqualified due to his Canadian citizenship. Includes related correspondence, newsclippings, and photocopies of the design plan. Inclusive dates: 1986

KSU student, one of the organizers and a coordinator of Students Maintaining and Advocating Cooperation and Constructiveness at Kent (SMACCK), a student organization. Papers include SMACCK and SDS flyers. Inclusive dates: 1977-1980

Hoover was a KSU sociology professor, Associate Dean of Arts & Sciences, and Chair of the 1979 May 4 Observance Committee. Papers include materials concerning the planning and staging of the commemoration and information on the University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence (UCICNV). Inclusive dates: 1970-1979

Obituaries and information about the 4 KSU students who were killed on May 4, 1970: Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer and William Schroeder and the nine students injured. Inclusive dates: 1969-2000

Baron was a KSU psychology professor, present when the shootings occurred, and along with others, did his best to keep students calm and the situation from escalating. Papers include letters from students after the incident. Inclusive dates: 1970

Personal accounts of and commentaries on the events of May 4, 1970 and their aftermath, submitted in writing by various people. Full-text is available for many of these accounts. Inclusive dates: 1970-2003

The May 4 20th Commemoration records include agendas, schedules, budgets, correspondence, news clippings, press releases, and other materials pertaining to preparations for the 1990 commemoration of the shootings. Inclusive dates: 1985-1991

Flyers, publications, posters, and documents created by SDS (national) and the Kent State chapter. Includes information on protest activities of the late 1960s on the Kent State campus. Inclusive dates: 1965-19074

This 25th commemoration art exhibit by Kay Willens allowed visitors to write their thoughts on notecards and use them to replace seed packets, which they could then take home and plant in remembrance. Includes all the responses. Inclusive dates: 1995

Civil suit documentation donated by Judge William Kernahan Thomas. Includes court documents, judge's notes, exhibits used in trial including maps and photos. Useful to studying May 4 litigation and before and after photos of May 4 shooting. Inclusive dates: 1978-1979

Helen was Executive Secretary, Honors College and John was Director of Food Services, KSU in 1970. Food Services was responsible for feeding the National Guard, the state police and the students following the shootings. Papers document the immediate aftermath. Inclusive dates: 1970-1972

Papers separated from KSU presidential papers that are directly related to the events and aftermath of May 4, 1970. Include correspondence and reports related to May 4. Other miscellaneous administrative files have been added as they are discovered. Inclusive dates: 1968-1977

Barclay Doster McMillen was a Kent State University political science lecturer and assistant to President Robert I. White from 1967-1971 and was also the "Special Counsel for Student Rights" from 1968 to 1969. His papers include correspondence with White regarding campus unrest, manuscripts written by McMillen about who was responsible for May 4, 1970, audio recordings of McMillen's thoughts about the events, and a Minority Report of the Commission on KSU Violence. Inclusive dates: 1968-1999

KSU history professor. Includes an address to the faculty by Bruce Harkness, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, in the fall semester of 1970, as well as summaries of the special meeting on "the ROTC question" and class opinion questions with student responses. Inclusive dates: 1970-1985

Earle Roberts served on a variety of May 4-related committees, including the Kent Students Medical Fund, Kent Community for Non-Violent Change, the Committe for Non-Violence, and the Campus Security Advisory Committee (CSAC), the last of which he served as chair. Inclusive dates: 1968-1983

Faculty papers which include correspondence, clippings and items related to the memorial marker donated by the KSU faculty that preceded the current Hillel marker at the May 4 site. Prof. Ohles led the drive to establish this marker. Inclusive dates: 1966-2001

This collection contains a variety of sound recordings created and/or collected by WKSU, Kent State University's public radio station. The recordings, originally made on tape, were transferred to compact discs in 2001. Inclusive dates: 1970-2000

From 1969-74, "Carp" was News Director at WKNT-AM/FM (commercial stations) in Kent. This collection includes articles, newspaper clippings, subject files, and artifacts related to the events before, during, and shortly after May 4, 1970. Inclusive dates: 1967-1998

During his years at Kent State (1969-1973), Keane was a graduate student, residence hall assistant, and instructor at the Center for Peaceful Change. He was co-leader of the national petition for a Federal Grand Jury regarding the events of May 4, 1970. He also organized Pop's Snow Squad, a town and gown collaboration. Inclusive dates: 1969-1973

The 39 photographs that encompass this collection were taken by Deborah J. Andersen. Most of the pictures date from September 17, 1977 and September 24, 1977 and document Tent City. (Photos have been digitized and can be viewed online.) Inclusive dates: 1977

Ayers, a KSU alumnus and professional cartoonist, took these 54 photographs of the KSU campus from May 1-3, 1970. Includes images of student gatherings, damaged buildings, Ohio National Guard personnel and vehicles, and events of May 4. (Photos have been digitized and can be viewed online.) Inclusive dates: May 1-3, 1970

In 1970, Howard Ruffner was a second year student at Kent State University, majoring in broadcast communications. Ruffner was also on the staff of the Daily Kent Stater and the Chestnut Burr, editing the yearbook in 1971. Among other things, this collection includes photographs that appeared in the 1971 Chestnut Burr, many of them showing the events of May 1-4, 1970. (Selected photos have been digitized and can be viewed online.) Inclusive dates: 1970-1971

Contains photographs taken by the Ohio State Highway Patrol during the events leading up to and including May 4, 1970. (Photos have been digitized and can be viewed online.) Inclusive dates: May 1-4, 1970

The Commission on KSU Violence (CKSUV) was assembled on May 8, 1970 by President Robert I. White to collect information about the events leading up to the Kent State shootings. Materials in this collection include statements about the events, survey responses, reference materials, administrative records, and audio-visual materials. Inclusive dates: 1963-1976

The Akron Beacon Journal Kent State Shootings collection contain records pertaining to the reports from the Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Ohio State Highway Patrol records include inter-office correspondence, autopsy reports of the victims, and notes pertaining to the investigation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation records include various reports from agents assigned to investigating the shootings. The FBI records comprise an earlier draft of the final copy of the report. Inclusive dates: 1969-1983

This collection contains the personal papers of Robert C. Dix, member of the Kent State University Board of Trustees from 1941-1973. The materials mostly center around the events of May 4, 1970 and provide an inside look at the events from an administrative perspective. Inclusive dates: 1944-1996

Phone

Street Address

Mailing Address

Email

As a top Ohio undergraduate and graduate school, Kent State's eight campuses offer the resources of a large university with the friendly atmosphere of a liberal arts college. Enroll today to start pursuing your future at one of the best colleges in Ohio. We’ve been educating graduates for over 100 years; join us today.